BRASILIA (Reuters) - The scion of a
storied political clan is edging closer to being Brazil's third
president in just over a year, a change that would be blessed by
business elites who view House Speaker Rodrigo Maia as the easiest
solution to a political crisis.

President Michel Temer is charged with corruption
and is likely to face at least two more graft charges in the coming
weeks. He can only be tried by the Supreme Court if two-thirds of the
lower house of Congress vote to allow it.

Temer, who replaced Dilma Rousseff last August
after she was ousted by the Senate, is expected to survive the first
vote, which is set for Aug. 2. But it is increasingly likely he could
lose votes on subsequent charges, key lawmakers in Temer's coalition and
opposition have told Reuters in recent days.

If that happens, Temer would be suspended for 180
days, replaced temporarily by Maia, 47. If Temer is convicted by the top
court, Maia could serve out the remainder of his term, which runs
through the end of 2018, by winning an indirect election in Congress,
where he would likely face little competition.

Maia was born in Chile when his father, Cesar,
later a three-time mayor of Rio de Janeiro, was a communist in exile
during Brazil's 1964-85 military regime. A college dropout, Maia worked
in banks before starting his political career in 1997.

The soft-spoken speaker still pledges allegiance to
Temer, but behind the scenes he has sought to reassure investors and
executives of his priorities, sources with knowledge of the meetings
told Reuters.

With Maia as president, the bulk of Temer's reform
agenda would stay on track, including a proposed overhaul of the social
security system, and the economic team led by Finance Minister Henrique
Meirelles would remain, according to the speaker's confidants in
Congress.

Maia's press representatives declined an interview request and dismissed reports of his meetings as media speculation.

The speaker's market-friendly reputation has been
bolstered by his leadership of the center-right Democrats Party, which
argues for reducing the state's role in the economy, cutting
bureaucratic burdens on business and lowering taxes.

"We have nothing against an eventual presidency of
Rodrigo Maia," said Alencar Burti, president of ACSP, the main retail
association in Brazil's richest state, Sao Paulo. "As long as the
president is replaced following the rules mandated by the constitution,
we will give our full support for the new leader to keep current
economic policy and approve the reforms."

Key Support

Maia also has received public endorsement from key
lawmakers such as Senator Tasso Jereissati, head of the Brazilian Social
Democracy Party (PSDB). Brazil's third largest party, the PSDB, is in
Temer's coalition for now but leaders have openly debated a departure,
opening the door for smaller parties to follow.

Maia has won the respect of colleagues in the lower
house as a good listener who freely admits when he is wrong about an
issue or simply does not understand it.

After keeping a low profile about graft allegations
facing Temer for more than a month, Maia has become more assertive on
social media of late. This week he defied Temer's proposal to tweak a
labor reform bill by presidential decree.

Allies say he needs to be very careful. Any hasty
move to ascend to power could be interpreted by members of the coalition
as an unseemly betrayal of Temer, a long-time ally.

"He will have to make sure he does not jump the gun," said Betinho Gomes, a PSDB lawmaker who will vote to suspend Temer.

As Maia gets closer to the presidency, his past is
coming under greater public scrutiny. Like Temer and dozens of fellow
lawmakers, Maia appeared in a list of politicians accused by executives
from engineering group Odebrecht SA of receiving millions of reais in
illegal campaign financing. He has not been charged with a crime and
denies any wrongdoing.

If he becomes president, the investigation into him
would be suspended until he leaves office and he would be able to seek
re-election for four more years in October 2018.

Maia is far from a household name in Brazil. In 2012 he won just 3 percent of the vote in the Rio mayoral race.

His political skills have never faced a task as
tough as steering Brazil out of the current crisis, said Ricardo Ismael,
a political scientist at Catholic University of Rio.

"Rodrigo is being forced to become a mature politician," Ismael said. "He will need to be surrounded by good aides."